Jack for containers.



l. E., F. M. &1.W.SHULL. JACKl FOR CONTAINERS. APPLlcATxoN FILED oc. s. 1911.

Patented Feb. 25, 19H).

JESSE E. SHULL, FRANKLIN M. SHULL, AND JOI-IN W. SHULL, OF ALPENA, SOUhTH DAKOTA.

JACK FOR CONTAINERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 25, 1919.

Application led October 3, 1917. Serial No. 194,584.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that we, JESSE E. SHULL,

FRANKLIN M. SHULL, and JOHN W. SHULL, citizens of the United States, residing ao Alpena, in the county of Jerauld and State of South Dakota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Jacks for Containers, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings. p This invention relates to an improved j ack for barrels,'tanks, and like containers, and has for its primary object to provide a simple and easily operated device for moving a barrel filled with liquid from a vertical to a horizontal position in order to dispense the contents thereof, or from a horizontal to a'vertical position when the barrel is to be refilled.

It is another and more particular object of the invention to provide a device for the above purpose, embodying a suitably constructed base, supporting` means for the barrel or container movably mounted upon the base, means for pivotally or tiltably mounting the container upon the supporting means, and manually operable means for actuating the supporting means, whereby the barrel or container may be disposed in either a vertical or horizontal position with respect to the base.

It is a furtherobject of the invention to devise a movable supporting means for the container and an operating means therefor, the several parts of which are so correlated that a very rigid and substantial supporting structure will be provided to sustain the container in a horizontal position above the base and prevent its accidental or unintentional movement with respect thereto.

The invention likewise has for one of its detail objects to provide in addition to a hand operated lever for the container support, foot operating means connected to one side of the container, whereby the container when in a vertical position, may be initially liftedfrom the base to facilitate the operation of the supporting means in the move` ment of the container to a horizontal position.-

n It is also a further general object of our invention to provide a barrel or container jack as above characterized, which is eX- ceedingly strong and durable in its con-y struction, highly convenient and serviceable in practical use, and likewise capable of manufacture at relatively small cost.

With the above and other objects in View, our invention consists in the novel features of construction, combination, and arrangement of parts to be hereinafter more fully described,- claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which,

Figure l is a side elevation showing ythe barrel or container in full lines in its vertical position and in dotted lines in a hori-V zontal position;

Fig. 2 is a similar view to Fig. 1, looking at the opposite side of the container;

Fig. 3 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, showing the relative positions of the parts when the container is in a horizontal position;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional view taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. l; and

Figs. 5 and 6 are detail perspective views of the respective gudgeon plates or brackets.

Referring in detail to the drawings, 5 designates the spaced, parallel sills or beams of a base structure which are rigidly conneet-ed to each other at their opposite ends by the transverse bars 6 and 7 respectively. Between the connecting bar 6 at the outer longitudinal edge thereof and the ends of the bars 5, the bearing plates indicated at 8 are rigidly secured by means of vertical bolts 9 extending through the bars 5 and 6. Each of these plates is provided in its cen-I tral portion with a bearing cuff or sleeve in which a hollow pipe or rod 10 is rotatably mounted. The opposite ends of this pipe are exteriorly threaded to receive the elbow coupling members 1,1. In these elbows, the lower ends of the tubular standards 12`l1ave threaded engagement. l

Bearing members 13, similar to the members 8, are likewise secured by bolts 14 between the inner longitudinal edge of the other end bar 7 of the base and the bars 5, and in these' bearing members a solid rod or shaft 15V is likewise rotatably mounted. This rod 15 is provided with an angular arm 16 on each of its ends, said arms extending upwardly above the base bars 5.

. ofr a metal band section 23 is .securely B designates the barrel, tank, or other container which, in the illustrated embodiament of our invention, is of cylindrical form and may be of any desired capacity. This container is provided on one end with av faucet or valve b whereby its contents may be drawn. Upon the wall of the container B midway between its ends and at diametrically opposite points, the. cruciform gudgeon plates designated 17 and 18 respectively, are arranged. The arms 19 of these plates projecting longitudinally of the tank or container', bear against the Wall thereof and prevent tilting or angular movement of thevplates with respect to the container wall. Each of these plates is centrally provided with a cylindrical bearingstud or gudgeon 2O and 21 respectively. To one of the other arms of-.the gudgeon plate 17, one end riveted, and to the other end of this band section, a short length of link chain 24 is connected. The other arm 25 of the gudgeon plate 17 terminates in a hook 26 adapted for engagement through an opening in one end of the relatively long band section 27. To the other end of this latter band section, an eye 2 8 is secured for a purpose to be presently stated. A third band section 29l is riveted at one of its' ends to the circumferentially extending arm 30 and the gudgeon platev18, and the other end of said band section is angularly bent, as at 81, and apertured to receive t-he threaded bolt upon one end of which the nut 33 is engaged. The other end of this bolt terminates in a hook 34 which is adapted for engagement in one of the links of the chain 24 connected lto the band section 23. The

y, other circumferentially extending arm 35 band section 27 and is provided with a terminal hook 39 for engagement with one of the links of the chain 37. A clamping nut 40 is threaded upon the bolt 88 to co-act withthe eye 28. Thus, it will be seenthat this sectional clamping band can be readil adjusted and tightly clamped varound the tank or container to securely retain the gudgeon plates 17 and 18 in their applied positions and hold the same against relative .shifting movement.

The upper ends of the standards 12 are flattened and provided with openings to receive the respective gudgeons 20 and 21. Rods 41 are also loosely engaged at one of their ends upon the respective gudgeons and have their other ends bifurcated to receive the flattened terminals of the crank arms 16 on the rod 15, to which the rods 41 are pivotallyconnected by the bolts indicated at 42. Cotter pins or other retaining elements are engaged with the outer ends V0f the rgudgeons to retain the rods-41 and ther standards 12 in connection therewith. To one of the crank arms 16, the angular end of an operating lever 44 is bolted, welded, or otherwise securely fixed. A l

ln addition to the hand lever 44, we also provide a -foot-operated lever 45 fulcrumed in spaced relation to one of its ends, as at 46, between the upper endsk of vertically' disposed, converging, bracket members 47 which arev fixed to one of the b'asewbars 5'. This end of the lever 45 is pivotally connected to one end of a metal bar 48, the

other end of which is slotted, as at 49, and

engaged upon the gudgeon 21 between the plate 18 and the end of the standard 12. To this standardv 12, intermediate of its ends. an angular bracket plate 50 is secured, and between the offset end of said'plate and the standard, the hand-operated lever 44 -is adapted to engage to Vlimit the movement of said lever when the barrel or container is disposed in a horizontal position as clearly shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1 of the drawings. Y

At the relatively opposite side of the container with respect to the operating levers, a metal bar 51 is loosely engaged at its other end upon the rod 15. The other or upper endL of this bar is slotted, as at 52, for relative movement upon a pin or stud 53 fixed in a plate 54 secured upon the band section 27 adjacent to the gudgeon plate 17. it will be noted that the plate 54 has its medial portion angularly offset from the band section 27 and disposed in a plane substantially parallel with the base structure when the barrel or container is in a vertical'po'sition. The slot 52 in the bar 51 permit-s of a downward and forward tilting movement of the barrel or container when the same is in a horizontal position, so that said container may be completely drained of its contents.

Parallel track rods 55 extend longitudinally upon the upper surfaces of the base bars 5 and have angular ends 56 extending through coinciding openings in said bars and the end bars 6 and 7 of the base. Suitable retaining nuts are engaged upon the threaded terminals of these rods. These rods provide a metallic track upon which the barrel end will have free sliding movement in its adjustment to a vertical or horizontal position with respect to the base.

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings` the construction and several advantages of our invention will he manifest. When lthe barrel or container is in vertical position as shown in dotted lines in F ig. 1 of the drawings, in which position it maybe conveniently filled, in Vorder to dispose the container in a horizontal position above the base, the operator first bears downwardly with his foot uponA the upper end of lever 45, thus rocking this lever upon the supporting brackets 47 and forcing the bar 4S upwardly. This bar cti-acting with the gudgeon 21 urges the A barrel orcontainer upwardly, thereby causrods 41 relative. to the arms 16.

ing the standards 12 to swing toward a vertical position and to move the rods 41 into longitudinal alinement with the angular arms 16 on rod 1'5. When the barrel has thus been given its initial upward movement b v the foot lever 45, the hand lever 44 swings over toward the operator who grasps said iever and pulls the salne over and down wardly, thereby continuing the movement of As these rods move into alinement with the crank arms, the :bar 51 exerts a downward pull upon the barrel or container, owing to the fact that the connection of this bar to the pin or stud 53 is spaced fromthe pivots or gudgeons on the barrel. Therefore, it is seen that the barrel will be tilted between the standards 12 and swung to a horizontal position. Uien the operating lever 44 is inally moved into engagement with the stop bracket 50. as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1 the joints between rods 41 and the crank arms 16 are disposed slightlypast or inw-ardly of the axial center of said rods so that the weight of the container and its contents tends to further urge the operating lever -'.l.4. downwardly upon the stop bracket 50. Thus` it will be seen that the supporting structure will be very substantially braced against the relative movement of its parts and the accidental return movement of the container to a verticalY position upon the base structure. Itis, of course, apparent that. a mere reverse or upward movement of the lever 44 will break the joints between the rods 41 and the crank arms 16 in an outward direction so that the bar 51 will act to' swing the barrel orcontainer to a vertical position as it is lowered upon the base.

From the above, it will be seen that we have devised a very simple and durable barrel or vcontainer jack which may be operated with ease and facility and a minimum of exertion to dispose filled barrels or containers of large capacity into position to dispense the contents thereof or to enable the container to be refilled. The invention is particularly well designed for use in connection with tanks or containers for dispensing gasolene to retail purchasers. It is, however, apparent that our invention may also be advantageously employed for use in connection with containers for various other all such legitimate changes as may be fairly.

embodied within the spirit and scope of the vf invention as claimed. Y

VHaving thus fully described our invention, what we desire to claim and secure by Letters Patent is 1. Ajack for containers and the like -including relatively movable supporting members, means foi` 'swingingly mounting a container .upon said supporting members manuallyvoperable means to move the supporting members relative to each other, and additional means operable independently of the supporting.. members and concurrently therewith to swing the container to a prede termined position in the movement of said supporting members.

A jack for containers and the like including relatively movable supporting members, means for swingingly mounting a container upon said supporting members` manually operablemeans for moving the supporting members relative to each other, and additional means operatively connected to the container and mova'ble with respect to the supportingv members during the movement of the latter to swing the container to a predetermined position.

3. A jack for containers and the like including relatively movable supporting members, means for swingingly mounting a container upon said supporting members, an operating lever rigidly fixed to one of the supporting members to move said members relative to each other. and a bar pivotally mounted at one of its ends and operatively connecte-d at its other end to the container to swing the container to a predetermined position in the relative movement of the supporting members;

4. A jack for containers and the like includ-ing relatively movable supporting mem bers, means for swingingly mounting a container upon said supporting members` an operating lever rigidly fixed to one of the supporting members to move said members relative to each other. additional foot-operatedl means to initially move the container from one position thereof and start the relative movement of the supporting members. such movement being continued by the operation ofv said lever, and a bar pivotally mounted at one of its ends and operatively connected at its other end to the container to swing thefcontainer to a predetermined position in the relative movement of the supporting members.

5.fA jack for containers and the llike including aba'se, supporting members mounted for'relative'rocking movement upon said base, means for mountingI a container for swinging movement upon the supporting members, said container [when in la vertical position resting' upon' the base7 manually operable means to rock said supporting members and elevate the container 'above the base, and'additional means operatively connected to the container to swing the same to a horizontal position above the base in the relative rocking 'movement vof the supporting members.

6. A jack for containers and the like including .a base', supporting members mounted on vthe base for relative rocking movement, means for pivotally mounting a container directly upon one of said supporting members, relatively movable connection between said means and the other of the supporting members, manually operable means directly connected to one of the supporting members Ito rock said members andelevate the container above the base, -and'additional means movable'relative to the supporting Imembers and operatively connected to the container to swing the container to a predetermined position-with respect to the base.

7. A jack for containers-andthe rlike in-.

cluding a base, supporting members mounted on the base for relative rocking movement, means for pivotally mounting a container directly upon one 'of said supporting members, relativelyl movable' connections between said means and the' other oi the supi porting members7 manually operable means directly connected to one of the supporting members to rock said members and elevate the container above the base, and additional means movable relative to the supporting members and operatively connected to the container to swing the container to a predetermined position with respect to the base, the operative connection between said last named means and the container permitting of a limited tilting movement of the container upon the supporting members.

8. A jack for containers and the like including a base, supporting members mounted for relative rocking movement upon one of the supporting members, relatively movable connections between said means and the other supporting member, the container when in a vertical position resting upon said base` foot operated means for initially lifting the container from the base, a hand lever directly connected to one of said supporting members to continue the rocking movement of said members relative to each other, and a relatively movable -bar pivoted at one end and operatively connected to the container at its other end to swing said container to a ofthe lfoot lever imparting an initial lifting 'means Vvconstructed and operating to swing horizontal position with respect to thepbase -in the continued'rocking movement of the supporting members. Y n

9. A jack Jfor"c0ni',ainers and the'like including a base, supporting members mounted for relative rocking movement upon the base, means for pivotally mounting the container directly upon vone of the supporting members, relatively movable connections between said means and the other supporting member, the container when in a vertical position resting upon said base, a foot-operated lever mounted on the base, a member pivotally connected at one end to said lever and operatively connected at its otherend to the container, said member in the operation movement to the container, a hand 'lever directlyconnected to one 'of the supporting members subsequently operable to continue the rocking movement of said members, and

the container to a horizontal position with respect to the base in such relative movement of the supporting members.

1:0. A jack forcontainers and the ylike including a base, supporting members mounted for relative rocking movement upon the base, means for pivotally mounting the container directly upon'one of the supporting members. relatively movable connections between ysaid means andthe otherV supporting member, thev container when in a vertical position resting upon said'base, a foot operated lever mounted on the base, a member pivotally connected at one end to said lever and operatively connected at its other end to the container, said member in the operation of the foot lever imparting an initial lifting movement 'to the container, a hand lever directly connected `to one of the supporting members subsequently operable 'to 105 continue the rocking movement of said members, means constructed and operating to swing the container to a horizontal position with respect to the base in such relative movement of the supporting members, and 110 stop means on one of the supporting members preventing further movement of the hand lever in the latter position of thecontainer and thereby preventing the casual reverse rocking `movement of the support- 115 ing members.

11. A jack for containers and the like in! cluding means operable to bodily lift and support a container, and means automatically operable in such movement of the container to move the container to a predetermined angular yp osition with respect to the' ,supporting means, said supporting means 12. A jack for containersand the like in- In testimony whereof We hereunto affix 10 cluding manually operable means to bodily our signatures in the presence of two Witlift and support a container, and means opnesses.

erably connected to the container and act11- JESSE E. SHULL. ated during the operation of said support- FRANKLIN M. SHULL. ing means and independently thereof to JOHN W. SHULL. move the container to a predetermined an- Witnesses:

guiar position With respect to the support- A. J. AISENBREY,

ing means. K. T. AISENBREY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for ve cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

